Long Term Report - Sierra Designs Cirque Sleeping Bag

Andrew Claus

March 20, 2006

Tester Information:

Tester: Andrew Claus (Trail name “Garlic Man”)

Age: 48

Gender: Male

Height: 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)

Weight: 150 lb (68 kg)

Email: andrewclaus@yahoo.com

 Home region: Evergreen, Colorado (Front Range foothills of the Rockies)

Backpacking Background:

I live and play in the Colorado Rockies.  I have been backpacking, backcountry skiing, and bicycle touring for over twenty five years.  I have recently begun through-hiking and fast-packing.  I through-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail in 2004.  I’m not quite a fanatic ultra light packer yet but my pack base weight is as low as 10 lb (5 kg) if I don’t bring a stove and pot.  I use a tarp, a bivy, or no shelter at all.  I get out year-round on day-trips in all kinds of weather, especially weekly backcountry ski trips.

Brief Summary:

The Sierra Designs Cirque sleeping bag provides sufficient insulation when used with no other shelter in 0 F (-18 C) temperatures.  The DriZone shell functions quite well.  The hood portion of the bag seems proportionately large, and the position of the draft collar may make the bag a tight fit for taller people.

Product Description: 

Manufacturer: Sierra Designs

Product: Cirque sleeping bag (men’s regular)

Listed weight: 3 lb – 10 oz (1.64 kg)

Tested weight: 3 lb – 12 oz (1.70 kg)

Year of manufacture: 2005

MSRP: US$339.95

URL: www.sierradesigns.com

Please see my initial report for a more detailed product description.

Listed packed size is 9 in x 19 in (23 cm x 48 cm) (in compression sack provided).  The stuff sack weighs 6 1/4 oz (177 g).  Tested packed size is as listed. 

Listed and tested length and girths are as follows:  80 in (203 cm) length, 62 in (157 cm) shoulder girth, 57 in (145 cm) waist girth, 43 in (109 cm) toe girth.  I measured the length from the toe box to the draft collar as 64 in (163 cm).

Long Term Report:

For this Long Term Report I was able to use the Cirque bag in a different region and different conditions than those documented in the Field Report.  I traveled to the area of the Cascade mountain range in Southern Oregon and Northern California, USA.  I also used the bag with two different shelters; a simple non-floored, open-sided tarp and an emergency bivy bag.

When I woke up the other morning at the rim of Crater Lake (in Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, USA) it was apparent that the temperature had dropped more than expected overnight.  The forecast was for 14 F (-10 C) and snow showers.  The skies cleared overnight, it stopped snowing, and it got much colder.  My pack thermometer read 2 F (-17 C).   Winds were calm, elevation 7,000 ft (2,134 m).  Snow pack was about 140 in (3.6 m) deep, with about 24 in (60 cm) of fresh snow. 

I was very pleased that I had passed such a cold night in blissful ignorance, with only minor shivering and slightly cold feet.  This was to be my last night out during the test period.  I was also pleased that I was able to give the bag a pretty good test so late in the winter season.

For my overnight ski outing at Crater Lake, I brought along my tarp as shelter.  As with every other outing in snow with this bag, I used a Tyvek ground sheet, a ¾ length sheet of Reflectix insulation, and a ¾ length accordion-fold pad.  I wore the same clothing I always do; a Polartec 200 fleece jersey, expedition weight long underwear bottoms, and a WindStopper fleece cap.  I think the use of the tarp made me feel at least 10 F (6 C) warmer.

The moisture under the tarp did not cause me any problems that night.  I packed the bag covered in frost and “snow” from the inside of the tarp.  When I unpacked it in a warm room, though, I noticed that the insulation had gotten slightly damp.  There was some minor clumping of the down.  This was especially noticeable on the bottom, maybe because there’s less down.  The DriZone shell repels falling precipitation, but it’s good to keep in mind that it’s not waterproof (the manufacturer makes this point quite clearly).  It would have been necessary to attempt to dry the bag during the day if another night out was planned.  The down dried quickly and its loft was easily restored.

I had a similar condensation experience a few days earlier using an emergency bivy bag (a foil-covered fabric bag from Adventure Medical Kits).  Conditions were 10 F (-12 C), winds 20 mph (30 kph), very light snow, elevation 4,000 ft (1,220 m), no snow cover, at Lava Beds National Monument in Northern California, USA.  With more wind and drier conditions, the damp insulation was not noticeable.  There was frost inside the bivy and on the outside of the shell, but this easily dried later in the day.

My most valuable moisture experience in the bag came during a very wet snow when I attempted to camp without a shelter.  This was along the Pacific Crest Trail near Lake of the Woods in Southern Oregon, USA, at an elevation of about 6,000’ (1,830 m), 20 F (-7 C) temperature, winds 20 mph (30 kph).  After about 3 in (8 cm) of wet snow I was having difficulties with large clumps falling into my face from the rim of the hood.  I tried pulling a rain jacket over my head but the breathing hole still let too much in.  Then I noticed that my butt was getting wet.  Enough snow was melting from my body heat to soak through the bag.  I pitched my tarp, and the rest of the 6 in (15 cm) snowfall did not trouble me.  The excessive moisture under the tarp led to very heavy frost in the shelter and on the bag.  I was still very pleased with how the bag’s shell worked in the wet snow.  The only problems I had were with snow under the bag and falling and blowing into my face. 

Another feature that worked well on that trip was the breathable nature of the shell.  I went to bed purposely wearing very damp clothing.  It was damp enough in the bag to steam up the reading glasses I was wearing out in the cold air when I moved and the bag “exhaled”.  The damp clothing dried out in a matter of hours and there was no noticeable loss of insulation effectiveness.  The heavy snow had not started by this time. 

In my Field Report, I mentioned a chronic cold feet problem.  I have been using a shelter for the rest of the test period and I have wrapped a spare sweater around my feet. My feet have not been as cold, and have rarely been uncomfortable.

In the Field Report, I mentioned that I believe the draft collar is positioned too low in the bag, and that the hood seems too large.  Since then, I’ve paid closer attention to this.  The collar is sewed into the baffle seam below the hood opening, a full 6 in (15 cm) below the opening.  On warmer nights out (20 F (-12 C) or higher) I have not used the draft collar, and have noticed that the hood seems to work better and I have more foot room.

I have had more luck working the zipper lately.  It seems to take a little practice to find the correct position and angle for the single zipper pull while parting the baffles.

I still have not noticed any loss of down from the shell or the liner.  I have been impressed with the quality and quantity of the down insulation.

I have not had to launder the bag, and it remains unsoiled from clean winter use.

Because of my travel away from my home region in the Colorado Rockies I was not able to make an attempt at a 14,000 ft (2,750 m) peak as mentioned in my last report.  The test data gained in this wetter Cascade mountain environment was very valuable, though.

Thanks to Sierra Designs and BGT for the opportunity to test and use this sleeping bag.